Ooompa Loompa said:The third, and final tasting for tonight is a Samuel Smith Taddy Porter. I love dark beers, so I was pretty sure this one would be a no brainer for me.
It poured black, with an almond colored head that stayed present for most of the drinking, although did finally dissipate at the end. It didn't appear super heavily carbonated, which I have occasionally scene (and didn't like) in this style of beer. The smell was wonderful. It was very complex: sweet and malty, with hints of figs, brandy, cherries, raisins, and just a tiny tiny hint of chocolate. Then I tasted it. I have to say the first taste wasn't nearly as good as I was expecting. In fact it was rather bland. But I had poured it straight from the fridge, so I thought maybe as it increased in temperature it would develop a bit more character. And it did. The more I drank, and the more it warmed up, the more the flavors really started to come through. Everything that I smelled in the beer I could taste, along with a very slight roasted flavor. I'm not sure if they used a little bit of roasted barley in this recipe, but it kind of tastes like it. The roasted flavor comes out after everything else. Just when you think you have grasped the full taste of the beer you get this slight roasted flavor, and that is the last thing that sticks with you. The carbonation was perfect, just a very light bubbly feeling, but not overly so. I definately enjoy this beer, and would drink it again, but it seems really sweet, and I think it would make a wonderful desert beer, perhaps with a nice slice of cherry pie, and I'm not sure that I would drink more then one, maybe two in a sitting.
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